Mika Pohjola: Special Edition

Glenn Astarita

Senior Contributor since 1997

Longtime contributor to AAJ and Downbeat, Jazz Review, EjazzNews, Radio DirectX.

Recent articles (1,629 total)

Published: March 1, 2000

Finnish born pianist Mika Pohjola moved to New York City in 1995 where he has been creating a bit of a stir on the local scene which is a laudable accomplishment when considering the abundance of talent in New York’s fertile jazz environment. A good sampling of Pohjola’s creative juices, composing skills and technical gifts can be heard on Special Edition which contains 16 musical tracks comprised of compositions Pohjola composed between 1994-1999 and a series of interviews which were conducted in English and Finnish. On various tracks, Pohjola performs with such notables as bassist Bruno Raberg, guitarist/educator Mick Goodrick, saxophonist Chris Cheek and others. Throughout, Pohjola demonstrates his acute sensibilities for rich melodies, swing, and nifty utilization of space; however, the pianist also exhibits left-of-center tendencies on occasion. No doubt, Pohjola is a fine pianist who possesses a vivid musical imagination while at times fusing “classical” style motifs into traditional jazz formats. In summary, Special Edition provides an admirable glimpse of a young talent on the rise....* * * ½

Check out www.jazz.what.cc as this and other CDs by the artist are also available through North Country Distributors. For additional information or direct contact, send Mika an email at: mikamusik@email.com

Record Label: MikaMusik
Style: Straight-ahead/Mainstream